Instead of lockdowns, Cebu province to implement isolation protocol

CEBU, Philippines – Shunning lockdowns of specific barangays, this province will instead implement an isolation protocol of individuals who have interacted with  coronavirus patients in a new strategy to contain the pandemic.

The province of Cebu is still under a general community quarantine (GCQ), although it has appealed to the national coronavirus task force that its status be downgraded. The whole Central Visayas or Region 7, is under GCQ.

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia does not hide her aversion for lockdowns because of the effects on the economy and government coffers.

In the province’s new protocol, first-level contacts of people infected with COVID-19 will be identified, and then isolated to curb the transmission of the disease.

Level 1 contacts are individuals who have interacted with positive cases with not more one meter distance, for at least 10 minutes, in the 14 days prior to the patient’s isolation.

This new tact will rely mainly on rigorous contact tracing.  It is a departure from the stricter strategy of isolating an entire barangay whenever a coronavirus infection is confirmed.

(READ: ‘Cause for concern’: Experts project 11,000 coronavirus cases in Cebu by June 30)

Sugbo News, the official news outlet of the Capitol PIO, said that this protocol came from the Department of Health (DOH)-7 and would be adopted by the province.

The governor was expected to issue a memorandum circular on details of the new protocol.

The province decided on an “isolation protocol” even as Moalboal Mayor Paz Rozgoni reported that a barangay captain in her town requested for a lockdown after a positive case was reported in the said area.

Garcia said lockdowns drained resources and that there was no need for these since Cebu province was merely under GCQ.

“Let us not overreact kay di na man ta ECQ (enhanced community quarantine), GCQ man ta unya atong makita nga ang lockdowns did more harm than good,” she was quoted in the news report.

(Let us not overreact because we are no longer under ECQ. We are now under GCQ and we’ve seen that lockdowns did more harm than good.)

She said that the province also needed to focus its resources on priority projects like infrastructure. She added that the budget of  the local government units will not be realigned to sustain barangay lockdowns.

“Let’s start being realistic about this. Kaning atong kahadlok, wa na nabutang sa lugar. Unya ra ba ang epekto ana ang kwarta ana, di na mabutang sa lugar,” she said.

(Let’s start being realistic about this. Our fears are not in the right place. And this means money would not be channelled to the right places as well.)

“Dili na ninyo ipangrealign tungod lang sa kahadlok nga wa mahabutang sa lugar,” she added.

(You can’t realign that because of unrealistic fears.)

Garcia said because of the pandemic infrastructure projects in the province have been put on hold for months. 

“Duna tay responsibilidad nga molambo ang lungsod, naa pay imprastruktura na dapat gastoan,” she said.

(We have a responsibility to ensure progress for each town, we have infrastructures to fund.) 

 

As of June 11, Cebu province has had 340 cases of COVID-19 infections. There have been 33 deaths and 87 have recovered.

There are separate tallies for the cities of Cebu, Lapu-lapu and Mandaue. – Rappler.com